[ga] Seven New Top Level Domain Names Are Added

["JIM FLEMING" <JimFleming@prodigy.net>]

http://www.isoc.org/whatsnew/iahcreport.html

Contact:
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TEL 703-648-9888
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http://www.iahc.org

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Seven New Top Level Domain Names Are Added For
Internet Addresses and up to 28 New Registrars Planned


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WASHINGTON, DC, February 4, 1997 -- The number of names available to specify
Internet locations, such as web sites and email addresses, will increase and
more firms will be allowed to act as registrars for the names, under a plan
announced today by the International Ad Hoc Committee (IAHC).

Internet users will have 7 new generic Top Level Domains (gTLDs), in
addition to the existing ones (.com, .net, and .org), under which they may
register Internet names, when the plan is implemented. The new gTLDs and the
intended fields of use are:

.firm  for businesses, or firms
.store  for businesses offering goods to purchase
.web  for entities emphasizing activities
related to the WWW
.arts  for entities emphasizing cultural and
entertainment activities
.rec  for entities emphasizing
recreation/entertainment activities
.info  for entities providing information
services
.nom  for those wishing individual or personal
nomenclature


In addition, up to 28 new registrars will be established to grant
registrations for second-level domain names under the new gTLDs. The new
registrars will be selected by lottery from applicants who fulfill specific
requirements established by the IAHC. All the new gTLDs will be shared among
the new registrars, meaning that each registrar may effect registration of
second-level domain names under all the new gTLDs. It is intended that the
three existing gTLDs (.com, .net, and .org) would also be shared upon
conclusion of the cooperative agreement between Network Solutions, Inc.
(NSI) and the United States National Science Foundation (NSF), which allows
NSI to act as the registrar for those gTLDs.

The plan announced today is a result of efforts by an international group
named to resolve questions critical to the current and future growth of the
Internet. The eleven-member International Ad Hoc Committee, chaired by
Donald M. Heath, president and CEO of the Internet Society, received input
from individuals, organizations and government agencies from around the
world.

To guide future registrar developments, an association comprising all the
registrars, the Council of Registrars (CORE), to be established under Swiss
law will create and enforce requirements for registrar operations. These
requirements are spelled out in a separate legal instrument to which each
registrar must agree.

The IAHC plan includes the establishment of a non- regulatory policy
framework in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which both the
public and private sector will be invited to sign. The MoU will provide a
mechanism for signatories to advise on future policy evolution of the global
Internet domain name system.

"I am pleased that the Secretary General of the International
Telecommunication Union (ITU) has agreed in principle to act as the
depository of the MoU and to periodically publish an updated list of its
signatories," Heath said in releasing the IAHC report. "The structure we
have established for the operation and oversight of domain name
administration insures that we will have stability and continuing input from
a broad spectrum of organizations and individuals."

Heath pointed out that the IAHC will continue to function for the period
until the new registrars are named and the MoU has entered into force. At
that time, the IAHC will change to act as the committee to conduct oversight
of CORE until a permanent gTLD DNS Policy Oversight Committee (POC) is
established to perform that function. The POC will determine, in
consultation with CORE and a gTLD DNS Policy Advisory Body (PAB), the
evolution of gTLDs, registrars, and any fees that CORE may collect from its
members, the registrars, for services it may perform.

The POC and CORE will be advised by the gTLD DNS Policy Advisory Body (PAB)
that will consist of all of the signatories to the MoU and will provide
input and recommendations for general policy matters relating to gTLDs and
the Domain Name System (DNS). Signatories will include representatives from
governments, independent governmental organizations, non-government
organizations, and industry.

An earlier draft proposal by the IAHC had recommended a mandatory 60 day
waiting period before activation of new domain names, in order to alleviate
what is considered to be a major source of instability in the DNS, namely
widespread piracy of famous trademarks by certain domain name holders. In
the final report, that recommendation has been replaced by a more
comprehensive solution that addresses the needs of all classes of
stakeholders. In addition to making the 60 day waiting period optional for
registrants, the final report institutes a system for dispute settlement
involving on-line mediation, mandatory arbitration (if a domain name
challenger chooses to initiate arbitration), and a fast-track on-line
administrative domain name challenge procedure.

The administrative domain name challenge procedure would be conducted
on-line, and would allow an intellectual property right holder to petition a
panel of international experts to determine if a second-level domain name
violates the policy that a domain name which contains an internationally
known trademark may only be held by the trademark owner. The dispute
settlement procedures would be administered under the aegis of the World
Intellectual Property Organization Arbitration and Mediation Center, located
in Geneva.

"During the public comment period, we received over 4000 submissions from
the interested public, including 100 submissions from organizations around
the world and we are very pleased with the acceptance and broad consensus
that we have achieved in this process," Heath stated. "To attain its fullest
potential, the Internet requires true self-governance. The Internet
Society's role is to facilitate that requirement," he added.

The IAHC is a coalition of participants from the broad Internet community,
working to satisfy the requirement for enhancements to the Internet's global
Domain Name System (DNS). Organizations naming members to the committee
include: Internet Society (ISOC), Internet Assigned Numbers Authority
(IANA), Internet Architecture Board (IAB), Federal Networking Council (FNC),
International Telecommunication Union (ITU), International Trademark
Association (INTA), and World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). The
full text of the IAHC report is being published at the Internet site:
http://www.iahc.org.



Jim Fleming
http://www.DOT-NZ.com
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